ItTastesPurple

7 hours ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I read that at that particular terminal it had to fit in a tub to go through the scanner.

 

This is true. When we went through security 2 weeks ago, all our carry on luggage had to be put in bins to go through the scanner - like some airports (JFK and certain terminals at LGA do this). My standard size rolling carry on fit no problem. 

For reference, it was a Samsonite 21' spinner, hard case. 

Hi All! 

First of all, thanks to everyone in advance for their feedback and advice! 

Now, onto the question! 

The BF and I are looking into a Norwegian Fjord or Arctic Circle cruise next year and the ships in question are: 

• Explorer of the Seas
• Serenade of the Seas 

I've only ever sailed with Norwegian - and the Allure on Royal Caribbean. Besides the Explorer being double the size of the Serenade and more Allure-like, as I think it has a Royal Promenade, are there any major differences that would deter me from picking based on itinerary rather than ship? 

Thanks!! 

To preface this review, I have never sailed with Royal Caribbean or on a megaship before. The majority of my cruises were with Norwegian and 1 cruise with Carnival and Princess apiece. But I’ve always wanted to try Royal Caribbean and a megaship. So when we were planning our vacation for the year, BF and I decided to just do it.

Our sailing was a bit special since it was the Allure’s first sailing out of the Port of Miami. As a result, our cruise was 6 nights instead of the standard 7 nights that she would be running for the rest of the season. This meant that when we got onto the ship, our rooms were already ready, as they had a day to transition from Fort Lauderdale. I think it was about 12:00, so we just went straight to our rooms to unpack.

The new terminal was gorgeous and efficient on the inside. Getting there, though, was a bit hectic. Traffic was bad. Uber didn’t know Terminal A existed yet.

Our stateroom attendant came and knocked on our door within the first half hour of us being in the room. She wanted to introduce herself and ask us if we had any special requests. She was very nice and made up our rooms in a very timely manner.

Our first meal was in the Park Café for the Cruise Critic famous roast beef sandwiches. Yummy!! Then we meandered over to Giovanni’s to check on our FNDR reservations. They actually didn’t have us down for any reservations at all for FNDR, so we were able to snag a 6:30pm reservation for Giovanni’s. I’d definitely recommend checking once you get on board in order to get a good time for the restaurant that you want.

The rest of this review is going to be split into a few sections, since I don’t want to bore anyone with all the details of our days.

THE FOOD

I read a lot online about how the food in the Main Dining Room (MDR, from now on) lacked variety and was on the decline. I read a lot about how bad the pizza was. Well, this foodie does not agree. I’ve been writing a food blog for the last couple of years. It’s not super popular, but it has its hits. I’m a Yelp Elite (if this means anything to anyone). I’ve been to Michelin starred restaurants. Also, I’m a born and raised New Yorker. I know my pizza.

Giovanni’s, our only specialty meal on board, was absolutely delicious. We split 3 appetizers, split the mushroom risotto, and each had our own filet. The filet was cooked to perfection. For dessert, we had tiramisu and gelato. Everything was delicious. I hated nothing.

For the rest of our dinners, we ate in the MDR. Sure, only about 3 of the options change per night, but we never had any trouble finding something to our liking. In fact, sometimes there were 2 or 3 items we’d like and had to make a hard choice. Having the standard stables every night as well meant we had a fallback in case we didn’t like the selections of the day. Appetizers were good and entrees were always cooked to our desired doneness. Desserts, though, were the star of the show. The Warm Chocolate Cookie was one of the best things I ate on the cruise. The Grand Mariner Soufflé was also so good that we ordered another one.  

Dinner in the MDR ranged from 50-60 minutes for us on most nights. The food always came out hot – or cold, when it came to ice cream. Our waitress and assistant waiter were phenomenal and really got us in and out every day without much trouble.

We had lunch in the MDR on both sea days and the food was great as well. They have chilled soups during lunch, which I definitely ordered. Besides a menu, they also have a buffet with cold cuts, antipasti, hot foods, and a made-to-order section (one day it was pasta, the other it was Mongolian grill). There is also a giant dessert buffet spread. You bet I did both the menu dessert AND the buffet dessert. The best part is the chopped salad (or Tutti salad, as it’s affectionately called on Cruise Critic).

We had breakfast in a variety of places: Park Café, Solarium Buffet, Windjammer Buffet, and MDR. Each one has its benefits. The Park Café has made to order bagels as well as English muffin sandwiches, pastries, burritos, and fruit/yogurt. The Solarium has less selection than the Windjammer but it is quieter and less hectic. The Windjammer has the most selection, but sometimes it can be hard to find a table.  Like lunch, the MDR offers a menu as well as a buffet section.

The pizza was actually quite good. And remember, I have high standards when it comes to pizza! Whenever we went, there was usually a smallish line, so everything was super fresh. Our pizza was often too hot to eat. I wish they used bigger plates though, because they would pile the slices on top of each other.

THE SHOWS

We tried to see all of the shows that they had to offer, except for the headliners and comedians, as we’re not into cover performances or stand up comedy.

The Aqua Show was spectacular. I have so much admiration for these acrobats and divers that can do the stunts on a moving cruise ship! Definitely get there early if you want to get a good seat – and remember that it’s outside so depending on the weather, it can be a bit windy.

We went to both ice shows – Ice Games! and How to Train Your Dragon. Ice Games! was really good and we thoroughly enjoyed it. HTTYD was just A-OK, in our opinion. It’s only 25 minutes long, so it’s basically a super condensed version of the movie. It’s definitely a kid pleaser, but not great for adults.

Mama Mia! was phenomenal. I’m a huge Broadway nut, so I love how Royal Caribbean makes such a big deal out of their shows. They do full 2 hour and 45 minute shows with an intermission. The actors and actresses were all really, really good. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Blue Planet was also really good. I didn’t have too many expectations going in, but I ended up really enjoying myself.

THE ACTIVITIES

I’m a child at heart when it comes to cartoon characters, so you bet I ran around the ship chasing the Dreamworks character meet and greets. They happened throughout the day on Sea Days and mostly during the evening for the other days. I managed to meet: Puss in Boots, Shrek, Alex the Lion, the Penguins from Madagascar, Mort, the hippo from Madagascar, and Po from Kung-Fu Panda.

They have a representative with the character to direct traffic and help you take photos on your phone. There will also be an official photographer – but you are not obligated to buy any of the pictures.

Speaking of photographers, there were TONS everywhere and I definitely took as many pictures as I could. I’m a huge fan of taking official photos because sometimes they’re just 100x better than mine AND being a couple traveling alone, it’s hard to get photos of the two of us that aren’t from a selfie stick. We ended up buying 4 photos that I’m super happy with. The photographers for the posed photos on formal night really, really know how to do their thing.

THE POOLS

I love that the Allure has so many pools – and also so many whirlpools. We went to the pool every single day – I’m not joking!

Not sure if it’s just our sailing being in early November when the kiddies are still in school, but no pool chair hoggers at all. On our first sea day, we sent to the pool after lunch in the MDR and found tons of chairs available. We went to the pool every single day around 1-2pm and never had any trouble finding a spot. On the last sea day, the pools were kind of packed – especially the whirlpools – but we still never had trouble finding a chair.

THE PORTS

We opted to do zero Royal Caribbean tours/excursions.

Cozumel – We went to KaoKao Chocolate Factory and did a 1.5 hour factory tour that included making your own hot chocolate! It was amazing and well worth the $25 each.

Roatan – We did an island tour with Daniel Johnson's Monkey and Sloth Hangout. It cost $40 per person for a guided tour + guided visit to cuddle with sloths and play with monkeys. It was amazing. Our tour guide/driver was very nice and informative. We even talked a bit about the MSC crashing into the Roatan port earlier in the year. He thought it was very ironic that it would be MSC that did the crashing – because MSC typically does not give local tour vendors a lot of business, as their visitors tend to book ship excursions. There was definitely a lot of concern within the private tour industry because ships like the Allure started cancelling Roatan and they already had so many tours booked!

Costa Maya – We booked many months in advance with Maya Chan. Definitely plan ahead if this is something you want to do, because they do book up. The ride to Maya Chan was … an adventure, but we never felt unsafe. Service and attention at Maya Chan was unbeatable. They even kayaked out to us in the water to get our drink orders!! Please be aware that the seaweed is still a problem. The water isn’t pretty and some spots definitely didn’t smell great, but it didn’t stop us from having a great time. I really admire all the workers that work constantly during the day to clear the seaweed from the beach.

FINAL THOUGHTS

As someone coming from a Norwegian background, I didn’t know what to expect. But I thoroughly enjoyed myself. The ship didn’t feel crowded at all – except for when shows let out or people were trying to get up from the gangway. Even walking from one end of the ship to the other didn’t feel obnoxiously time or labor intensive.

The food in the MDR was fantastic (and remember, I’m a huge foodie and I’m picky about what I give praise to). The food in the buffet was so-so. Why is the mac & cheese always so salty?! I think I definitely liked the variety on Norwegian or Princess better. The cheese and cured meats section on the Allure was so bland. The pizza was definitely better than the other cruise lines, but I wished they had more late night options. Norwegian has a 24 hour pub-style restaurant where you can get buffalo chicken wings or other hot dishes (and an amazing cheesecake) late at night.

Honestly, besides the buffet and the lack of late night food options, I didn't find a cruise on Royal Caribbean to be too different from my previous cruises on Norwegian or Princess. Would I cruise with Royal Caribbean again? HECK YES. I'm very happy to be adding another cruise line to my options and we're already looking for options for next year. 

BF and I were on the 11/5 Allure sailing. We had a check-in window of 11:30am, but arrived closer to 12pm due to the terminal being a hot mess. 

If you're planning on using Uber or Lyft, at least last week, the app didn't know Terminal A existed and therefore, it was impossible to input it into the app. Thankfully, BF speaks fluent Spanish and was able to get our Uber drive to drop us off. It took forever to get to the terminal since all the lanes merge into one lane. Definitely account for how long this will take if you're looking to meet a certain check-in window. 

Once we got off, the terminal itself is very pretty. Brand spanking new with new paint smell and all. We were ushered up the escalators and into the line for people with printed or phone seapasses. They had several people checking guests in with iPads. If your uploaded photo was OK, you're good to go after a quick scan. If you didn't upload or your picture wasn't good enough, they'll take it on the spot on the iPad. 

Only a separate line for suites. The couple behind us were Diamond + and was very, very upset that they did not have a separate line for them. They were in line with us regular folks :P 

Standard airport security lines... 

Then onto the ship! 

It looks like our itinerary will be changing for May 6th due to the pier damage in Roatan. Hopefully they will have it fixed quickly for those who have cruises further out in the season. We are still anxiously waiting to see if we will have another sea day or go to a different port. I still plan to post cruise compasses for the trip[emoji3]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

I've heard so many different reports of what is happening for the Allure sailings including Roatan. Interested in seeing if it will indeed be another sea day or if another port will be substituted in. We're really hoping the pier is fixed before our November sailing as we have a sloth cuddle planned!

Thanks in advance for posting cruise compasses! Hope you have a great trip in May!

I was thinking the exact same thing as you! There is a button on the cruise planner to modify a reservation, but was not able to use it. And even if it allowed me to, it showed the higher price. We can call and maybe get it changed but I am not going to bother. What I will do is just go to Chops on embarkation day and ask them if we can switch. I'm guessing they won't mind as long as they are not fully booked. If not, we'll still have it to look forward to. Happy sailing!

Yes! This is exactly what I was planning on doing.

If we don't make it in, I figured we'll just get some of those famous roast beef sandwiches and enjoy Chops on our last sea day. End the trip with a bang!

Happy sailing to you too!

You would be cancelling and re-booking at the higher price. The money you originally paid would be refunded to your credit card in a few days.

Thanks for your answer, Bob! I figured that might have been the case when I saw the price difference, but thanks for confirming that for me.

I brought Chops Lunch via my Cruise Planner a few weeks ago when it was on sale for $17.60. The price is now the regular price of $22 in my Cruise Planner.

I wanted to swap my original reservation from our last sea day to Embarkation day after reading all the posts on here about how it's super nice to have a nice lunch at Chops instead of fighting the crowds in the Windjammer.

If I'm just swapping the time (it does say I'm cancelling my original reservation), would they charge me the difference between the sale price I originally brought the lunch for? Anyone ever done this before?

Thanks in advance!

Following! I'm also on this cruise in November when it moves to Miami. Can't wait!